Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
I've kind of defected to the Hope and Anchor for beer garden fun and games
So who is drinking where, now that the Bert is closed?
- Thread starter john x
- Start date
reNnIe said:
Because no-one else goes there after the last management pissed everyone off with noise restrictions, early closing and general shite service? It's far from a horrible pub, with a fantastic beer garden, but you're not alone in not visiting there recently - you barely hear a peep about the place now.
Inclined to agree with Choc though - I'd never consider moving next to a successful pub with an established and sizable beer garden and then complain about the noise. Unless, that is, the character of the pub changed massively, which I'm not sure is the case with the DoE.
Edited to add: not sure why you're rolling your eyes at choc though Mr R - seems a fair enough comment to me. Surely you were more than aware of the pub when you moved there - it's not really a surprise to hear noise from a pub with a generous garden like that is it?
Not trying to be bloody minded, but we've got to cut existing businesses some slack. It's hardly an Imperial Garden type situation perhaps, but I'm always wary of comparatively recent residents complaining about long existing hostelries.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
reNnIe said:
No, but they do lovely food at good prices and they bring it out to you
Orang Utan said:
Great beer garden in there, with some lovely suntrap areas. One of those surprises that you'd never expect from the outside.
Thought the food was a little bit overpriced and too fussed around with to be honest though. They took the gastropub ideal a little too far imo - we recently went for a sunday roast in there and I'll admit to rolling my eyes at the wordy and entirely unnecessarily ponced-up descriptions. Sadly the skills in the kitchen didn't seem to match the flowery verbosity of the menu.
That said, the staff were friendly and it's a nice place. It's hard to knock as a great venue for a summer drink.
What's happening to the old Fridge Bar by the way? That grand piano and classy interior suggests something different a'brewing.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
tarannau said:
Overpriced? It was a tenner for two courses.
I don't remember any descriptions on the menu - just a list of dishes.
I had some lovely red mullet in there.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
tarannau said:
Did it used to be a Fridge bar? The sign on it used to be the Fridge Gallery - I've seen the piano and thought 'oh no' - Brixton doesn't really need a piano bar does it?
Mrs Magpie
On a bit of break...
I fall between Mr Retro and editor/choc on this. Last time I was in the DoE (a while ago) it made the Dogstar on a weekend night sound like you could hear a pin drop and it was so loud it was actually really extremely unpleasant. There was a landlord who was a bit of a wanker but he didn't last long apparently. I do have sympathy for pubs that have been going for years who then get hassle from new residents. The Bull's Head in Barnes being a notable example. It's been a Jazz Pub since the 1950s and a couple of years ago a woman moved nearby and tried to get their music licence revoked. I did not have one iota of sympathy with her. On the other other hand I know someone who lived near the Effra and she suffered when people were pissed and noisy. Sometimes pubs change from a bit of acoustic music or a quiet jukebox to something louder and locals who didn't have any hassle before, found the goalposts had moved.
Orang Utan said:
Roast dinner (with horseradish jus, vegetable timbale and other nonsense) came upto about a tenner. Which ain't terrible I suppose, but I'd prefer more of a mouthful on my plate than on the menu. Good place though.
Ms Magpie's got a real point though - the Effra's perhaps the consistently noisiest pub that I know in Brixton, slap bang in the middle of a densely-packed residential area. Horrendously noisy at times - even from the other end of the street and to folks who generally like Jazz. I can honestly see why folks may want to complain, but it's also a pub I'd hate to see change - it's got such a good reputation for live music, built up over many years. It's difficult to see where you can draw the line.
I'm missing the Albert now. Could do with a quicky after work, even if it is only Monday.
In the Albert you know someone will always turn up before long. Elsewhere I feel a bit of a dick. They give me funny looks in the Trinity.
In the Albert you know someone will always turn up before long. Elsewhere I feel a bit of a dick. They give me funny looks in the Trinity.
You mean watered down horseradish?tarannau said:
Orang Utan said:
Sorry - got me bars and galleries mixed up. It was indeed called the Fridge Gallery, although the link between the two always seemed tenuous. I think I've only been in there 3 times over a good few years and it was far removed from the clean, piano-toting bar it appears to be changing into now...
Mr Retro
Beware hedgehogs
tarannau said:
If you read my posts you'll see I'm not complaining about the beer garden but behaviour outside the pub. And you are correct, if the beer garden bothered me I wouldn't have moved in. Or at least I would have moved out after the 6 month break clause.
I'm rolling my eyes because to say a beer garden has the right to stay where it is far too simplistic. What about when management sneakily change it's use by various measures? Piped music, bands, open air restaurants, unofficial extensions to the premises etc etc?
You can be as fucking wary as you like, but wheather they live in an area for 40 days or 40 years, a resident can complain about long existing hostileries if the hostilery is preventing them from enjoying where they live.
Should anybody have to put with the list I put up earlier in the thread? And in fact it doesn't really bother me, but it does really bother some of my neighbours and I intend to stand together with them.
<edit:for clarity>
Mr Retro
Beware hedgehogs
Ya, I stopped going there when they refurbed the garden with a theme of "cut back trees and squash as many tables and therefore punters in as possible". This robbed all it's charm.
It's funny - I could practically shout an order to the barstaff of DoE from my house. But if a fancy for a pint comes on in the evening and we discuss where to go, it's always the canturbury or the trinity or Cantinho de Portugal or Landor. 2 nearer pubs DoE and the Queen don't even register on the radar.
It's funny - I could practically shout an order to the barstaff of DoE from my house. But if a fancy for a pint comes on in the evening and we discuss where to go, it's always the canturbury or the trinity or Cantinho de Portugal or Landor. 2 nearer pubs DoE and the Queen don't even register on the radar.
yes it has gotten quieter there if anything (if i qualify to say that with only 7 years of experience) and shamefully there is no cheap bbq burgers anymore and the beergarden closing time is at 10.30 which is a shame if the weather is nice.... 
as for inside the pup, it is not as nice as outside although in a way the rooms are alright....it is those new tap (sp?) instalations and the big screen with football on that i didn't like...and to be chased out of the garden of course...
still always a good choice to go to if you fancy a bit of outside..also like the trekk there as well. ferndale road is a nice street a bit out of the way of the usual hassle and buzzle..
the hope and anchor has a great garden but is too much for me in the inside and it is on acre lane which is boring to walk down...great garden for kids though..
as for inside the pup, it is not as nice as outside although in a way the rooms are alright....it is those new tap (sp?) instalations and the big screen with football on that i didn't like...and to be chased out of the garden of course...
still always a good choice to go to if you fancy a bit of outside..also like the trekk there as well. ferndale road is a nice street a bit out of the way of the usual hassle and buzzle..
the hope and anchor has a great garden but is too much for me in the inside and it is on acre lane which is boring to walk down...great garden for kids though..
another thing which i haven't mentioned in a while is that the albert is not my favourite pub at all...i find it a bit scruffy and loud and smokey and chl'ny but then again i am not so particular about pups really and i go to anywhere where i like the company...
my list of fav pups in and around brixton is:
the trinity/ the effra
duke of Edinburgh
the pullens in herne hill
the albert
my list of fav pups in and around brixton is:
the trinity/ the effra
duke of Edinburgh
the pullens in herne hill
the albert
reNnIe said:
Same here. The Hob's still my favoured local in summer - its very much in your face and full of Brixton characters, but it's also a huge melting pot of a place at times. It's not the kind of place you can have a quiet pint - you're almost guaranteed to bump into someone - but it's got a surprisingly relaxed and settled atmosphere at the moment.
I like the Albert but I'm looking forward to seeing if the refurb succeeds in 'opening' the pub up a bit. It often felt a bit too crowded and smoky in its old design previously, as if everyone was 'lined up' from front door to beer garden.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
Too quiet?
Maybe I'm getting old, but I prefer somewhere where I can get a seat and don't have to shout.
Maybe I'm getting old, but I prefer somewhere where I can get a seat and don't have to shout.
Donna Ferentes
jubliado
And does a pint of brown and bitter and a pickled egg.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
Pickled eggs, mmmm.
Donna Ferentes
jubliado
Copy of the Daily Herald.
Orang Utan said:
Eh. Aren't you the one who keeps going on about rammedplace, I mean bangface...
Point taken about The Trinity though. It's a little too quiet and anodyne for me to consider it a destination pub I guess, whilst it's also a bit off the beaten track for me to pop in quickly. But I can totally understand why it'd be a good place to have a good pint and some quiet time with the paper.
Orang Utan
Maybe I like the misery
tarannau said:Eh. Aren't you the one who keeps going on about rammedplace, I mean bangface...
Different kind of socialising, innit?
I like a dance in a sweaty box, but I like a chat in a quiet pub. I'm not a fan of bars that try to cater for both crowds, the dancing ain't fun and the chatting is almost impossible.
